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BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my!
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BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! |
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Subject: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: beardedbruce Date: 06 Dec 07 - 04:43 PM Tiny Limestone Lion Sets Auction Record Thursday, December 06, 2007 8:31:22 AM A 3 1/4-inch limestone lion from ancient Mesopotamia fetched the highest price ever paid at an auction for a sculpture -- $57 million. Sotheby's had estimated that the Guennol Lioness would bring up to $18 million. The tiny figure, found at a site near Baghdad, had been on loan from Alastair and Edith Martin to the Brooklyn Museum of Art for nearly 60 years. It is thought to be at least 5,000 years old. The family decided to sell the lion for financial planning reasons, the auction house said. It was sold through a charitable trust set up by the Martins, and the proceeds will benefit the trust. bidders at Wednesday's sale. The buyer, who wished to remain anonymous, entered the bidding at $27 million. The final price includes the auction house commission. The previous record for a sculpture at auction was Pablo Picasso's bronze "Tete de Femme," which sold at Sotheby's earlier this year for $29 million. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: Little Hawk Date: 06 Dec 07 - 05:19 PM Hmm. Extraordinary. I could see it if it had been "Tete de Winona", and it was the only one of her you could get, but I can't see spending that much money on a limestone lion...or a Picasso bronze, for that matter. Damn silly, I call it. ;-) |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: Rapparee Date: 06 Dec 07 - 05:22 PM Probably was a child's toy to start with. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: JohnInKansas Date: 06 Dec 07 - 05:23 PM It's possibly just coincidence, but I've run into about three different Sotheby's auctions in the past month or so where quite a few items have gone for "3x Sotheby's estimate" or more. Even the Kovel's newsletter that LiK gets has commented on it, along with some "remarks" about changes in bidder tastes. The question I guess is: "Are Sotheby's guesstimators slipping, or has a whole new bunch of "idiots with money" simultaneously grown into free John |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: McGrath of Harlow Date: 06 Dec 07 - 07:09 PM "found at a site near Baghdad" - that's a pretty good euphemism for "stolen". But perhaps it's as well - there is a lot less stuff like this back in Iraq now in the wake of the destruction carried out during and after the invasion. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: Teribus Date: 06 Dec 07 - 07:54 PM Careful Kevin, I believe that the sculpture has been in the possession of the family for quite some time. Now unless you are prepared to contact them and the police and accuse them directly of theft then retract what you have just posted. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: Bill D Date: 06 Dec 07 - 08:10 PM Well...they are fools, says I. I wouldn't have paid more than 45 million for it! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: beardedbruce Date: 06 Dec 07 - 08:44 PM McGrath: "had been on loan from Alastair and Edith Martin to the Brooklyn Museum of Art for nearly 60 years. " |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: Charley Noble Date: 06 Dec 07 - 09:09 PM "Stolen" in 1947? Well, is that really less of a cultural crime than "plundered" during the current Bush invasion of Iraq? Actually the current plundering greatly exceeds $57 million, and its the U.S. taxpayers who are being plundered by Bush and Chaney's cronies. So far there doesn't seem to be much profit from exploiting Iraq's natural resources. Charley Noble |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: katlaughing Date: 07 Dec 07 - 12:45 AM Is it me or does she look like a wrestler with a lioness' head?. I see a tail curled up in front and her head, but can't tell if it's stylized with bunched up shoulders standing on her hind legs or just odd. Incredible sale. Sheesh! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: GUEST,Wolfgang Date: 07 Dec 07 - 10:47 AM It was discovered by Sir Leonard Woolley, a British archeologist, (or perhaps one of his coworkers) in the early 20th century. I think official excavations can hardly be termed theft. Wolfgang |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: Charley Noble Date: 07 Dec 07 - 04:49 PM Wolfgang- You may be legally correct, especially when the archeologist has a Ph.D. and a permit to ship what he finds out of the country. But there were a lot of thiefs of historic treasures, and I bet many an archeologist plundered at will as well as any traditional grave robber. Charley Noble |
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Subject: RE: BS: Lions and tigers and bears- oh my! From: M.Ted Date: 07 Dec 07 - 07:42 PM Folk music, of course, is different, and is free for the taking-- |
